Former Westview Elementary School property to become park

The property where former Westview Elementary School once stood is set to be transformed into a neighborhood park under the direction of the Muskingum Valley Park District.

At their last meeting, members of the Zanesville City Schools Board of Education voted to sell the property to the park district for $140,000.

According to Russell Edgington, Executive Director of the Muskingum Valley Park District, the district is able to make the purchase with the help of a donor.

“We were fortunate that an anonymous donor stepped in to provided the additional funding necessary to acquire the property,” Edginton wrote in an email.

To help offset the development costs for the park, Edgington said the park district will be hosting a festival on August 5 from 5-8 p.m. at the site of the future park.

According to Edgington, Westview Festival resembles what the elementary school used to host during its operation.

The festival includes carnival games, prizes, food and a bounce house.

After the park district’s June board meeting, Edgington said the Westview Community Park project has been underway since September when community members Rob and Sally Ogg proposed the idea.

At first, Edgington said his board was not in the market to take on a new park project, asking the community to prove interest.

One month later at the next park district meeting, the park citizen group returned with thousands of signatures supporting the development of Westview Community Park.

Plans for the space include a gazebo, walking paths, garden areas, open recreational fields and a woodland area dedicated for nature play.

“You take nature elements and you give kids the opportunity to like build stick forts and have things like stump jumps and tunnels to climb through,” said Edgington. “Basically what people my age used to do as a child- go out in the woods and play.”

Edgington said there are also plans to preserve part of the wall lining the corner of the property for alumni to remember their old school when they visit the park.

The total cost for Westview Community Park is estimated to be around $400,000, which includes the $140,000 spent to purchase the property.

According to the GoFundMe page, Westview Elementary school was used from 1913-2010. In 2016, the building was demolished.

Correction: A previous version of this article stated that the school board proposed the park initiative when it was in fact community members. The article has been update to reflect the accurate information.